Archive

It was 2003 when I saw my first Sears Modern Home Model #124. I’d visited Rebecca Hunter in the Chicago area, and she took me to Crystal Lake to see “an authenticated #124.” It was all very exciting and Rebecca had even arranged for an inside tour. That was a very happy day.

My oh my, what a fine-looking house and it's in such wonderfully original condition. It's listed for $175,000 and for those of us living near a coast, it defies belief that a house like this (on 2+ acres) could be purchased at such a low price.

*

This is my favorite photo, for so many different reasons. For one, it really highlights the beautiful condition of this 104-year-old house. Not only does it have original wooden windows, it also has wooden storms. Wow.

*

The entire front porch is so inviting. Those white wicker chairs help too.

*

And it even has a private drive. Be still my heart. Santa, are you listening?

Look at the size of those eaves! Notice all the windows across the back of the 2nd floor? Make a note of those many windows. More on that later. BTW, is that a ham radio antenna?

*

And there are interior views too! I suspect that fireplace mantel is not original to the house. That's just not the type of brickwork you'd see in an early 1900s house.

*

That staircase is a beauty, and a good match to the floorplan.

*

You're left wondering: Who's their favorite football team?

*

Sears Modern Home #124 was offered first in the 1908 catalog. The image above is from the 1914 catalog.

*

It last appeared in the 1916 catalog (shown above).

*

Pre-WW1 kit homes are pretty rare, and yet #124 appears to have been one of their most popular models. With 1930 square feet, this was one of their largest houses.

*

Check out that bank of windows on the 2nd floor (by the landing). That's a whole lot of windows.

*

Look at all those windows! The house in Amhurst, Wisconsin is a perfect match - front and rear!

*

It's an unusual house, but lots of charm!

*

What a beauty! And such a good match to the catalog image. Why isn't it being promoted in the listing as a kit house? And you wonder, why would anyone leave this little slice of heaven?

*

Here's the first #124 I ever saw, and it's in Crystal Lake Illinois.

*

Located in Montvale, New Jersey, this #124 is also in beautiful condition. Those river rock columns are stunning. (Photo is copyright 2013 Marguerite Deppert and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

*

Even tiny Taylorville, IL has a Sears Modern Home #124.

*

Dale Wolicki found this #124 in Augres, Michigan Check out the river rock on the column bases. Photo is copyright 2012 Dale Patrick Wolicki and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.

*

And they're even in the deep South, and with fancy columns! This house is in Lincolnton, Georgia. (Photo is copyright 2012 Steve and Teresa Howland and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

*

Another commenter mentioned this #124 in Rensselaer. New York. Thanks to another unnamed Relator for sharing this photo. This house is lcoated at 913 Washington Avenue and is also for sale.

*

And Kris left a comment at my other blog on #124, saying that he'd found this house in Medina Ohio.

*

Modern Home #124 appeared in the 1911 Seroco Paint Catalog.

*

Even though Modern Home #124 was offered only from 1908-1916, it proved to be a very popular house.

*

And while we've found the 124s in Montvale, Taylorville and Crystal Lake, there are still many MIA!

Last year, Sears homeowner Marguerite Deppert saw my blogs (here and here) on Sears Modern Home #124 and sent me several wonderful photos of her own home, which she had recently purchased in Montvale, NJ.

It’s a real beauty and in gorgeous condition. I wouldn’t be surprised if Montvale has many Sears Homes, due in part to the fact that they’re less than 30 miles from Port Newark, where Sears had a large mill. (Sears had but two mills - one in Cairo, IL and one in Newark, NJ.)

Thanks so much to Marguerite Deppert for sharing these photos with me! I’ve been drooling over them all morning!

Sears Modern Home #124 was gone from the catalogs by 1918 (when Sears Homes were given names), but it seemed to be a fairly popular house. It's certainly distinctive! (1916)

*

Marguerite's house was even mentioned in the 1916 catalog!

*

Some of the older homes have rather "odd" floorplans, but #124 was quite sensible.

*

Years ago, Rebecca Hunter and I toured the inside of the #124 in Crystal Lake, IL and that little bathroom shown above was really tucked away under that sloping roof. Interesting, but almost claustrophobic.

*

Nice house, and a darn good price!

*

Oh my, what a house! Even the detail around the chimneys is a match to the vintage image! (Photo is copyright 2013 Marguerite Deppert and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

*

The rock border on the driveway is a nice complement to the stone columns. (Photo is copyright 2013 Marguerite Deppert and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

*

A view from the side highlights that beautiful stone work on the chimney. The two chimneys are covered with stone to the roofline, and then above the roofline, they're brick. (Photo is copyright 2013 Marguerite Deppert and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

*

Close up of those unique details on the front porch. (Photo is copyright 2013 Marguerite Deppert and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

*

What a fine-looking house. What a treasure for Montvale. And I suspect Marguerite is one of the happiest homeowners in America! (Photo is copyright 2013 Marguerite Deppert and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

*

Look at those wee tiny second-floor windows tucked up under that porch roof. (Photo is copyright 2013 Marguerite Deppert and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

What a beautiful house! Just stunning. (Photo is copyright 2013 Marguerite Deppert and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

And thirdly, it’s just an interesting house with some quirky (and lovable) features.

So take a look at the pictures below and tell me, have you seen this house? If so, send me a photo!

And according to the catalog, these houses have been built in Texarkana, Arkansas, Washington, DC, Greenwich, Rhode Island, Grand Rapids, Michigan,Montvale, New Jersey or Youngstown, Ohio. And if you’re in New York state, there were 124s built in Brooklyn, Dunkirk and New York city.

If you’re near those cities, I would love to see photos of our #124 today!

It was also featured in the Seroco Paint Catalog (Seroco - Sears Roebuck Company).

*

Good floor plan - and spacious too.

*

This bungalow was surprisingly large! And lots of closet space, too.

*

As of 1916, it had been built in these cities. As of 1918, it was gone from the catalog.

*

Here's a lovely #124 in Augres, Michigan. (Photo is coypright 2010 Dale Patrick Wolicki and may not be used or reproduced without written permission.)

*

Sears Modern Home #124 in Taylorville, IL.

*

#124 in Crystal Lake, Illinois.

*

Same house in Crystal Lake, photographed in 2003.

*

The 124 was first offered in the very first Sears catalog (1908). It apparently was a strong seller, and appeared in their catalogs under 1917. It was probably removed because it looked a little "dated" in 1918.

*

UPDATE! Rachel Shoemaker - the indefatigable researcher - has found another #124 in Lincolnton, GA at the corner of Humphrey and Dallas. It sure would be nice to have a photo!! Anyone near Lincolnton?

In January 2007, my friend Dale drove from Michigan to Norfolk, Virginia to attend my wedding. While he was in the area, he drove two hours north to Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina to look for a suspected collection of Aladdin homes there.

And he hit the mother lode.

A few days after my wedding, I had an email from Dale telling me about the treasures he’d found in Roanoke Rapids. It was an amazing find. A few weeks later, I hopped in my little red Camry and drove to the area to check things out for myself. Plus, it’s a lot easier to find kit homes when someone has gone before you and made good notes of all the addresses.

Driving the streets of Roanoke Rapids, I started to drool. It was something I’d always hoped to see: A town built by Aladdin. Block after block of kit homes lined the streets. True, many of these houses were extremely modest and best described as worker cottages, but still…they were indeed kit homes sold by Aladdin in the early years of the 20th Century.